Hi, guys! I have the itch to write, but the two stories I currently do not have finished...I'm currently not feeling them. I may leave them and rewrite them in the future...we shall see. But, I have the urge again to write another modern HTTYD fic! I am a little excited about it. It will have ideas from my last story "Morals" included. I hope it doesn't confuse anyone. I hope you guys enjoy it! Thanks for reading!

...

The stars were absolutely brilliant on the chilly summer evening. Hiccup sat cross legged on the roof top of his home, sketching by the light of the full moon and a small camping lamp he'd found in the garage. After rubbing his arms to warm himself up a little bit, he turned back to his tree line on his sketch pad. Turning the pencil sideways, he began doing some shade work.

As the air grew a little colder, he knew his small body couldn't take the chill anymore. Having a feeling he was beginning to catch a summer cold, he knew he needed to return inside. His father was going to get upset with him for waking him up as he went down the ladder just outside the bedroom window again. But, oh well. It was a small price to pay for some sketching time.

Tucking his sketch pad and supply box under his arm, he reached for the lamp and headed towards the ladder on the roof. After shifting his feet onto the ladder, he slowly started to descend down towards the ground.

Suddenly, his foot slipped, the items in his hand fell to the ground. The ladder started tilting back. Hiccup realized this and yelled, then-

...

Hiccup sat up panting hard, his chest heaving to catch his breath in the darkness that surrounded him. Feeling both freezing and sweaty, he leaned forward with exhaustion. Another nightmare. It had to been fourth one this week.

Hearing footsteps down the hallway, he winced to himself. He'd woken his father up again. Feeling guilt wash over him, he turned his head away from the door just as his father had rushed inside the room, letting the light from the hallway inside, practically blinding Hiccup.

"Hiccup-" he heard his father breathe as he came towards the bed. Being mindful of where he sat at the end of the bed, he reached his hand up to Hiccup's forehead, pushing the sweaty mop of hair away from his eyes. Hiccup swallowed hard, willing back some tears that began to well up in his eyes. He was again embarrassed that the nightmare had woken him up.

His father, Stoick Vast (***author note: I know it's supposed to be Haddock but this is how it was written before) let out a deep sigh, and gripped Hiccup's shoulder, giving it a squeeze, attempting to comfort his son. Hiccup's father wasn't the greatest at helping him through these, but Hiccup was grateful he was there despite that. It bothered Hiccup that he'd woken his father up again, knowing he needed to be ready for work in a few hours.

"What can I do?" Mr. Vast asked his son after a moment.

Honestly, Hiccup wasn't sure. He swallowed hard. His throat burned a little bit as he tried to hold back the tears. Shrugging, he continued to look away from his father, focusing his eyes on the lamp in the shadows of his room.

"Same nightmare?" his father asked him quietly.

Finally making eye contact with his father, he nodded. His breathing was finally subsiding, and his heart was beginning to return back a normal beat. For a moment Hiccup thought it was going to pound it's way out of his chest.

Mr. Vast reached his hand up to Hiccup's neck, then felt the collar of Hiccup's shirt. After a small sigh, Mr. Vast turned towards Hiccup's closet and began looking for a fresh one for him to change into.

"Here," he said after a moment, unfolding it and presenting it to his son. Hiccup realized it was a long sleeved shirt, probably to help him with his chills. "Let's get you cleaned up a little bit at least."

Pulling the damp shirt over his head, Hiccup felt even colder as his wet skin was exposed. The ceiling fan was on. His father must have noticed Hiccup glancing up at it as he reached up and pulled the string to turn it off, trying to make Hiccup more comfortable.

"Ain't nothing to be ashamed of," Mr. Vast said to Hiccup suddenly. Truth was, Hiccup did feel very ashamed. He was so scrawny compared his his large, muscular father. Hiccup crippling at nightmares just made him feel worse.

Mr. Vast pulled the pillow from Hiccup's bed. It was soaked in sweat just as much as Hiccup himself had been. Feeling the sheets, they were the same. Sighing to himself, feeling more of an nuisance suddenly than a son, Hiccup said, "I'm sorry." His voice broke a little.

"Don't be," his father said. "This isn't your fault-"

"It's the same nightmare," Hiccup said to him. "It is my fault-I shouldn't-"

"Easy," his father said to him, placing his hand on his son's back. "We've been through this." Rubbing his strong hand in a circle a couple of times, attempting to bring Hiccup to ease, he let out a breath. It were times like this Hiccup knew his father struggled with words. "C'mon, I'm not letting you sleep on wet sheets tonight." Extending his hand to his son, he helped Hiccup slide his legs over the side of the bed. "Ready?"

"Yeah-" Hiccup said, bracing himself. He was unsteady when he stood up, and he found himself clinging to his father for support. He shook where he stood, feeling very unbalanced. It was obvious the nightmare was really taking effect on his body. He wanted to fight through the shakiness. He tried, but felt himself growing weak. His father placed a strong arm around him for support.

"I have you," his father said.

Mr. Vast helped him down the hallway, taking Hiccup at his own pace. Hiccup thought his father was half carrying him down the hallway towards the couch. He gimped his way into the living room. There, his father made him a bed, throwing an extra blanket over him with the intent to take his chill away.

Hiccup could feel himself continuing to shake. Had the nightmare really impacted him this much? The last few nights he'd managed to go back to sleep in his own bed. Only his shirt needed to be changed.

"Here." His father handed him a hooded sweatshirt. Hiccup pulled it over his head, feeling much warmer than he had before.

"Shake it off, son," his father said to him, taking a seat on the floor beside him, leaning against the couch for support.

"Dad, you have work tomorrow," Hiccup said to him. "I'll be okay-"

"I know you will, but I'm not leaving you out here alone for a little while," his father said to him.

Making his eyes adjust to the darkness, Hiccup realized that the clock on the wall was reading 5:15 in the morning. Not long from then the sun would be waking up, and the birds would be chirping outside excitedly at the new dawn. Sighing, he felt the guilt consume him again. He didn't like feeling like this.

"Dad, please, head back to bed-"

"You are going to fight me on this, aren't you?"

Hiccup smiled at the tone in his father's voice. "Of course-don't I always?"

"Stubbornness is what this is-" Mr. Vast said to him.

"I get it from both side of the tree," Hiccup responded. "Or do you forget that?"

"I haven't forgotten. I should have known you'd fight me over every little thing the moment you were born." Mr. Vast sighed. "You might have been born small, but you were pretty stubborn from the moment you opened your eyes." Mr. Vast turned and smiled at him. "If I'd of known, I might have reconsidered becoming a dad-"

Hiccup laughed, but found himself choking on his own mix of emotions in his throat. Once he'd settled himself, he turned to his father. "Dad, you've had little sleep. Please-I am begging you-go to bed. I can handle myself here."

Mr. Vast narrowed his eyes at him.

"I don't have my crutches with me. I'll be fine for the next hour, I promise."

Mr. Vast narrowed his eyes at his son.

"Please," Hiccup asked him again. "I won't leave the couch. I'll call for you if I need something."

Mr. Vast seemed to be mulling it over for a moment. Finally, "Do you need anything?"

Shaking his head, Hiccup scooted down into the covers a little bit more. "I'll warm up, I'll shake this off, I promise. Please, do me a favor and go back to bed."

Mr. Vast stood up hesitantly. He placed his hands on his hips, and nodded. "You'll call for me if you need anything?"

"Yes," Hiccup said to his father. With that, Mr. Vast disappeared down the hallway. Hiccup heard his footsteps fade as he went into his bedroom to hopefully get another hour or so of rest.

Despite feeling exhausted physically and mentally, Hiccup didn't fall asleep. He allowed himself to shake, knowing soon he'd warm himself up. Pulling both blankets around his upper body, he shoved his hands into the pocket of his hoodie, trying to help those warm up as well.

These nightmares were getting old. He was tired of reliving one of the biggest turning points in his current life. It had only been two weeks since the accident happened. He'd only been home from the hospital for a few days. Even there, his mind had been drowning in thoughts, and he couldn't escape his reality even in his sleep. His father had used up most of his vacation time already to be with Hiccup over the last few weeks, and due to future doctor's appointments much more was going to be eaten up.

Hiccup noticed his father was bringing more work home with him than he use to. But, he was also working from home more than before as well. Hiccup watched him a few nights ago cleaning up the spare room off of the kitchen to make a study for himself. There, he'd placed files and paperwork throughout the office. Knowing his father was only trying to help him, it had made Hiccup feel worse than he already did.

"Dad-I'll be fine on my own," Hiccup said to him that very evening.

"And what if you aren't?" Mr. Vast asked him. "What if you fall-or, can't make it to the kitchen, or the bathroom-"

"Dad, I'm sixteen, not six," Hiccup had responded back.

"Yes, I am aware of this," Mr. Vast replied to him. "But, you need to remember, this isn't a walk in the woods, Hiccup..."

A walk in the woods. How wonderful that sounded to him right then. With sunrise approaching, within an hour, had circumstances been different, he would have been getting up shortly to get dressed and pack for his long hike in the woods. Multiple times a week he'd head into the trees and spend easily two hours or more in his sanctuary.

But, instead, his summer would most likely be spent at home and at doctor's offices. All because he wasn't careful enough on the ladder. Hiccup had been lucky he hadn't broken anything more than his leg. The way he had landed he had shattered everything from mid-shin down. His father had heard him fall outside the window, rushing outside to him, carried him to the car when they both realized something wasn't right.

Hiccup jerked his head a little, trying to shake the memory. But, the thoughts continued to come to him...

The doctor had told them that they wanted to operate on the break immediately. It hadn't been but five hours since they'd entered the emergency room, Hiccup had been getting prepped for surgery. When he had woken up from surgery, he hadn't been in a cast like he had thought he would be. Once he was coherent again, the doctor explained to him that the leg was far too damaged to repair the way they had initially discussed. They had wanted to talk to him about what the next step needed to be.

Hiccup felt himself shaking again, remembering some of the words the doctor had said to him. His mind had trailed off when he heard her say "extensive therapy" and "a couple more surgeries." But, then he heard her say, "Or, if you want, we can take it." When she said this, his stomach caved. A few minutes later, he had in his lap a couple of pamphlets. He and his father were left alone to discuss the matter at hand.

At first, Hiccup's father had initially thought that Hiccup had wanted to go through more surgeries and therapy. But, Hiccup had stopped him before he began to get too far into discussing what the upcoming months would bring. Instead, he surprised his father with asking for his leg to be taken.

"I'll be cooped up longer if they try to save it," Hiccup explained to him. "You know I can't stay inside" And, on top of it all, the surgeries weren't guaranteed to work completely. There were many possibilities that Hiccup would have gone through the whole process and would need to have his leg amputated anyways.

In the end, Hiccup had won the decision. His father agreed, it was his life, he was the one that needed to learn to walk again despite which decision he made. The next morning, Hiccup had gone into surgery, and after that there was no turning back.

Suddenly, he heard his father's alarm going off down the hallway. He opened his eyes, and realized he'd somehow dozed off even for just a little bit. Outside the window, he could hear the birds chirping. Scooting himself up the couch, he leaned over and moved the dark curtains away from the window, letting in the day light.

His father's footsteps could be heard approaching. Turning away from the window, he met his father's eyes just as he entered the living room. Hiccup could tell immediately his father hadn't fallen back to sleep completely.

"Well," his father said. "Since we are both up, how about some breakfast?"

Never had his father been much of a cook. In the last two weeks he'd prepared more meals than he'd done in the last six months. For once, the fridge was decently stocked with food. Knowing his father was probably going to make some scrambled eggs or pancakes, Hiccup knew he wouldn't eat half of what would be placed in front of him. Hiccup's meals were often very minimal. An apple usually sufficed in the mornings for him. Dinner usually consisted of a bowl of canned soup, and maybe half a sandwich if Hiccup was feeling more hungry than usual.

Hiccup's father disappeared down the hallway, and came back again with Hiccup's set of crutches. The blasted things were enough to make Hiccup wish he had the strength to turn them over his knee and split them in half. His underarms were already really sore from using them. He'd been using muscles in his shoulders and back he didn't know he had to try to help himself walk with them. He'd been very shaky, nearly falling every time.

Stumbling just before he made it to the table with them, his father hovered, reaching his hand out to Hiccup to help him.

"I'm okay," Hiccup responded to him. His father pulled the seat out so Hiccup could relax. Once he was situated, a large hand covered his forehead for a moment. This was something Hiccup was getting tired of, but he knew his father was just concerned. With his limb still healing, there was a strong possibility for infection. And, considering Hiccup had woken up again sweating, it seemed to trigger his father's worry.

"I'm okay, Dad," Hiccup said quietly to him. "Don't worry, okay?"

His father eyed him.

"You know I'll tell you," Hiccup said again.

Mr. Vast turned to the fridge, and he started making breakfast.

Hiccup felt very bored, and groggy. He wished he'd had his cell phone to look at while his father cooked. He could hear eggs cracking in the room, then the sound of something sizzling in a pan. Hiccup didn't pay any attention until his father spooked him from his daze when a tall glass of orange juice was placed at his reach. He took a few sips of it, but didn't find himself too thirsty. Setting it aside, he turned back to his father, who was flipping the pancakes over onto a plate.

"I don't want-" Hiccup went to tell him he didn't want but one. Instead, three large fluffy pancakes were placed in front of him.

"Eat up," his father said to him, then setting some butter and syrup down. Hiccup looked up at his father's plate. It held about five large pancakes. His father was reaching into the fridge to grab a pack of strawberries. Now, those Hiccup wouldn't have minded to have alone for breakfast, maybe with a little bit of sugar sprinkled on top.

Instead, he decided to push that desire aside. He knew it would make is father happy if he at least had some of the pancakes. After spooning some butter out of the container, he spread it over the top pancake, then took a bite.

"No syrup?" his father asked him.

It was obvious his father was wanting to pour a generous bit over his own pancakes. Chewing his bite, Hiccup shook his head, and pushed the bottle over towards his father. Immediately, his father poured about a fourth of the bottle onto his plate.

Hiccup sighed. He hoped he could get through at least half the stack of pancakes.

...

I know the ending of this chapter was a little weak. But, overall I am pretty pleased with it. I have a couple of ideas flowing through my head. We will see what happens in the next chapter. Let me know what you think!